Bahru Zewde. Pioneers of Change in Ethiopia: The Reformist Intellectuals of Early Twentieth Century. Athens: Ohio University Press/Oxford: James Currey, 2002. xii + 228 pp. Photographs. Bibliography. Index. $49.95. Cloth. Between end of nineteenth century, when Ethiopia affirmed its independent statehood in face of European imperialism, and outbreak of World War II, when Italy colonized it, a good number of Ethiopians received secular education in various fields and in different parts of world. Through their education and exposure to industrial societies they became painfully aware of technical backwardness of their own society. Like their counterparts in other preindustrial countries, some of new intellectuals passionately sought a new understanding of domestic and external forces that facilitated or hindered Ethiopia's entry into modern age. As advocates of modernization, they wrote extensively, thoughtfully, and often incisively in hope that they would persuade a reactionary and xenophobic traditional polity that political independence without social, economic, and technological progress was no guarantor of freedom and state viability in a dynamic and fast-changing world. Their impact was apparently quite limited, and creative and vibrant intellectual life they set in motion was cut short when, in a state of frenzy, fascist government decimated intelligentsia in 1937. Pioneers of Change in Ethiopia is fascinating story of lives, ideas, and legacies of these extraordinary men of purpose and vitality. By drawing on a vast range of documentary sources and direct interviews, Bahru Zwede has written a slender but substantial book with admirable concision, clarity, and even-handedness. Bahru divides pioneers into first and second generations mainly on basis of their formative periods. The first group was educated at home and abroad during reign of Emperor Menilek II (1889-1913). A few of them owed their schooling to foreign guardians or benefactors following their fortuitous migration to such far-flung places as Austria and India; others were sponsored by emperor and his cousin, Ras Makonnen. The majority, however, were self-taught, often with help of Catholic and Protestant missionaries. Nearly all notable intellectuals, including Warqenah Eshate, Gabru Dasta, Gabra-Heywat Baykedan, Afawarq Gabra-Iyyasus, Takla-Hawaryat Takla-Maryam, Heruy Walda-Sellasse, Atsme-Giorgis Gabra-Masih, Gabra-Egziabher Gila-Maryam, and Deressa Amante, belonged to this generation. The members of second generation, educated abroad (mostly in France) through state and/or royal patronage in 1920s and 1930s, were of lesser stature; they wrote precious little and their reformist vision was much less visible. This group occupies just about half space allotted to first in book and does not seem to be worthy of even that much attention. Overall, though, narrative of pioneers' lives, with all their vicissitudes, is compelling. The individual portraits, which vary from one to seven pages, are full of evocative detail and illuminating anecdotes. The intellectual stalwarts of early twentieth century were writers of great merit, although it is not certain that they were all reformist. Still, author's judgment that the intellectuals as a group had an output that puts subsequent generations to shame (188) is probably accurate. They wrote with erudition, foresight, and eloquence on nearly all aspects of Ethiopian society, ranging from ethnography and historiography to slavery and political economy, and they called for reforms in social, economic, cultural, educational, and administrative spheres. For example, GabraHeywat's and Afawarq's depressing portrayals of peasantry and militia's predatory activities in countryside could not have been more vivid and captivating. Takla-Hawaryat's anecdotal remarks on a variety of issues were revealing and stimulating, just as Atsma-Giorgia's perspective on history of Oromo was refreshingly innovative. …